1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medical illumination unit having a rod-shaped body, which has a proximal end and a distal end and which can be inserted into a small-dimensioned opening.
2. Description of the Related Art
Medical illumination devices of this generic type are used in particular as so-called endo-illuminators, which are employed in operations in which the illumination should be brought very close to the operation site and/or should be introduced inside the body. Endo-illuminators are important particularly in the scope of minimally invasive operations. For example in opthalmology, the interior of the eye is often illuminated through a small incision with the aid of the thin light guide of an endo-illuminator.
A medical illuminator, by which the interior of the eye can be illuminated and which comprises a thin cannula arranged on a handpiece for introduction into the eye, is described for example in EP 1 719 482 A1. In the illuminator described therein, light from a light source is guided to the distal end of the cannula by means of a light guide extending through the cannula. At the proximal end of the cannula, a handpiece is provided from which the light guide is extended to a stationary light source.
US 2004/0090796 A1 describes a light source for use in opthalmology, in which the light source is arranged in the handpiece instead of in an external unit. An LED is employed as the light source, the light of which is injected through a lens into the proximal end of needle-like fiber optics. The injected light is guided by the needle to the distal end. The distal end of the needle can be inserted into the eye through a small opening, in order to illuminate the eye from the inside. US 2004/0090796 A1 furthermore describes another alternative embodiment in which the LED is arranged inside the needle, shortly before its distal end. An electrical supply lead is fed through the needle to the LED. This document does not, however, describe the way in which this configuration should specifically be embodied. In particular, the document does not reveal how an LED can be arranged in the very restricted interior of the needle.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a medical illumination unit which comprises a rod-shaped body having a proximal end and a distal end, the light source being arranged in the region of the distal end, and which can also be produced with a small dimensions of the rod-shaped body.